Winter Weekend

Gearing up for the Holidays

Well here we are and just about 2wks. till Christmas time! Finally ready and caught up for all the action! We have had a busy couple of weeks. I helped host a Ladies Holiday party with my friend Kim and we had a blast exchanging cookies, elephant gifts and playing Bunco with some good friends a neighbors.
This weekend was Aaron's 35th birthday. Kay and Mike came up to visit Saturday afternoon and we had the Wilke family join us for a fun evening of good food, Bunco, Just Dance Wii! We even were able to get Kay to give it a whirl! I did something a little different this year for birthday gifts for Aaron from the kids. I took both of them to the dollar store and let them pick out a couple of things all on their own that they thought Dad would like. Grace got him some football cards and a glow in the dark cover for his blackberry phone. Owen decided on a ice scraper with mitten for Dad to keep in his car! They each picked out their own card and a balloon. Aaron got a kick out of it and you can't beat the dollar store for affordability!
This afternoon we went to see Santa in the blizzard weather. We opted to go to Walgreens which was advertising visits with Santa along with affordable picture packages and a free 5x7! The Santa was a little lame but it ended up being the first year Owen didn't cling to our leg in tears so I was happy! He didn't know what to tell Santa so Grace suggested extra tracks for his train set. Grace asked for an Easy Bake oven. Of course neither gifts are what "Santa" had planned to bring! We ended the day with Barbie dress and TeePee making for Grace's school project. They are studying the Cheyenne Indian tribe and she had to make a project to tell a little bit about the Tribe. We ended up making a native american dress for her doll complete with two babies, one in a backpack carrier. Also a TeePee for the Indian doll which was the hardest part of the project, yikes! But, it turned out really well and we were both quite pleased!!
So, onto another week of 2 birthday parties for Jesus at Awana for both Owen and Grace as well as the salon open house and my Simple Diva open house, whew. I will be looking forward to the the last open weekend before the holiday craziness! Merry Christmas everyone!

My favorite holiday

Its Halloween time again! We started the holiday off early with our camping trip to Montello at the end of September. We had gotten a free camping certificate from some neighbors and it turned out that it was Buffalo Lake's Halloween weekend! It was a chilly weekend for camping but they kept us moving with lots of activities. Site decorating contest, pumpkin carving, makeup lessons, trick or treating and a haunted house! Dad and Holly came over for the afternoon to hang out with us. We brought along a few decorations for our site. I thought I did a pretty good job until seeing some of the sites during trick or treating. Wow, lighted pathways, coffins, fog, and so many decorations I don't even know how they got them there! Sure was a good time!

Saturday October 30th
We enjoyed a fun filled family evening with some of our neighbor friends at the Edgerton Community Center where our neighbor across the street Christy threw a 30th Birthday celebration for her husband Brody. The theme was 80's throwback roller skating party. The community center rents out the gym where they have roller skating every Friday night. Roller skates were provided and they were even allowed to bring in beer, soda and food! Might have something to do with the fact that Brody is a cop in the town! We planned to go with our friends Rich and Kim and their 4 girls. Of course we all dressed up, how could you not with that sort of theme! Aaron and Rich went as Hans a Franz from the 80's Saturday Night Live skit. It was perfect seeing as how Rich is about 6'3"! Kim and I were able to dig up some gray sweatsuits at Goodwill, Aaron was able to find back braces that appeared to mimic a weight belt. Aaron and I put our heads together and were able to take some t-shirts and ace bandages to make some big muscles for him. Kim went as a roller derby girl, I went as a 80's Valley girl along with the rest of the girls, Owen was a punk rocker. I was even able to find one of those studded leather bracelets for him and a wild vest at Goodwill! He sported a small Mohawk and whenever someone said they liked his hair he said, "no, its a Mohawk". He was very proud of it! The important thing is that we all left w/o any broken bones and had a lot of fun! Later that evening we ventured over to an adult party down the block. Quite the costumes for this crowd! At this party we found, the 34th Chilean miner, Brett Farve with no fly jeans, Dog the Bounty Hunter and wife, characters from the Brady Bunch, Richard Simons, Snookie and The Situation! It was quite the party and I am feeling it today ;)
October 31st:
Trick or Treat day! Our tradition has been to join up with our neighbors before hand to have some pizza and hit the streets together. We did that once again this year but maybe at a little slower pace. Grace and the older kids kind of got ahead of us so Aaron, I and my friend Kim got to hang with the little ones! It was a good night, a little cold but not unbearable. Home a little early but nothing wrong with that!

Bragging Rights

Ok, so this should be a safe place for a Mom to brag a little, right? So I just wanted to say how much I have enjoyed being a Mom lately! I feel like I have the best kids a Mom could ever ask for! My little Owen is just so darn cute and sweet right now I wish I could bottle him up! I am loving this age and it makes me sad thinking that its not going to last forever. He has such a great personality and makes us laugh all of the time. He lights everyone up in his presence! We recently went to my Aunt Linda's for a visit. Grace and I went out Thurs. night with my good friend Teresa and her family to the Haunted Trail Ride in town. Aunt Linda offered to keep Owen home with her but I could see that she was a little worried as to what to do with this 3 yr. old boy and if he would want to stay with her when Mom and Grace walk out the door. I really think she was waiting for a melt down from him. We don't see her a whole lot so to him she was kind of a stranger. I reassured her that he is a easy kid and a movie and popcorn would easily coax him into staying. Sure enough as we were leaving he says, "Come on Aunt Linda its time to watch our movie", and runs off! Just goes to show you what a easy going kid he is! Just hearing his little voice as I am sitting here typing makes me smile!
Then there is my Grace! Just as easy going as her brother and such a beauty. With the age she is at she does have her moments but for the most part she is a wonderful kid. I love that she is so caring and thoughtful and it makes me so proud when she takes her little brother under her wing. I wish a lot of times she was 3 again with Owen and I could coddle her the way I can with him. She is getting to big for that now and even when I try she just thinks its a joke. We do have some nice Mommy daughter moments, most of it with conversations. So I guess I can say that we have a new thing growing between us and just cross my fingers that it sticks! Never knew until this very moment how rewarding and happy being a Mom would make me :)

4th Grade

Well, Grace was off to 4th grade today! She was up early at 6:30 to get herself all showered, hair curled and dressed her best! She will be the little fish in the big pond this year! She started at Northside Intermediate in Milton which is 4-6 grade, taking the bus, whole new class and a much larger school! Riding the bus this am she got a taste of that. Apparently there were some older kids in the back of the bus talking about something they get to do and little 4th graders don't! But, besides that she had a good day and her teacher is very nice. She only knew a couple of boys in her class but made a girl friend in her class today, Faith. She found a couple of her other friends at recess to hang out. So, we've got a good start to the year can't ask for any better!

Grace's horse adventure!

Grace had a wonderful time as usual hanging out with my Aunt Linda and cousins Abby and Kay. Grace adores Abby and really looks up to her! I am so lucky to have such a great roll model for Grace! She spent the week staying at my Aunt Linda's house passing the time by typing up letters and stories on her typewriter! After Abby got done with her babysitting job they would head to the barn for riding lessons. Abby was Grace's coach and taught her all she knew! The following weekend they headed over to West Salem for the much anticipated horse show. Grace was in 5 events both Sat. and Sun. She added on English style riding and bareback this year. English proved to be a bit challenging for her seeing as posting (movement up and down with the horse with their lead leg) was quite a learning curve. However, she did take 3rd place on both Saturday and Sunday for her age group which was excellent! There was a bit more of a competition this year compared to last year according to my Aunt and Cousin and Grace lived up to the challenge! She managed to place in just about every event!
Showmanship: Saturday 3rd, Sunday 8th
Hunter Under Saddle: Sat. and Sun. 3rd
Bareback Horsemanship: Sat. 4th judge A 5th judge B Sunday 4th
Western Horsemanship: Sunday 8th
Western Pleasure: Saturday 1st judge A 2nd judge B, Sunday 3rd

It was SO much fun to come and watch her and see how comfortable and confident she was with Missy! Grace had met a friend named Chloe that was the same age and competing in the same events. The two of them were attached at the bridle when it was time to head over for an event! They also got the chance to take a little time to ride around and just enjoy the moment. My Aunt Linda, Chloe's Dad and I watched from behind as they rode off together. Watching this my Aunt said, "right there, that's what its all about!". Hearing that gave me a big lump in my throat. Seeing the pride, confidence and happiness in my little Gracie's face was priceless! What a wonderful experience!

Horsing around

Horsing around

Grace's Birthday Pics

Grace's Birthday

Grace is 9?? One more till the double digits?? YIKES! Grace had a laid back birthday this year and was put to work too! The night of her bday G & G Walsh came for dinner where Grace requested walking tacos, yum! She was spoiled by Grandma and Mom with clothes from Justice and ice cream cake from Coldstone!
At the end of month Grandma Marilee came and helped redecorate her bedroom!! It was a big project with painting her bed and walls! The finished project was pretty cool and Grace loves it! Thanks Grandma for all the hard work, it would have never gotten accomplished w/o you!

Tennessee Trip

Yes, I know this is late but I just can't seem to find the time to keep up with this blog thing. Too much time on Facebook I guess, ha! Anyway, our trip to Tennessee was wonderful!! The trip down and back couldn't have gone more smoothly! We stopped on the way in Nashville and stayed the night at a campground just off the interstate. It was an interesting campground, more of a parking lot for RV's so we were a little out of place! It was an experience and good enough for a short overnight stop. That evening we got in early enough to enjoy the pool and get some dinner just down the street. Just as we finished up our dinner we heard a rumble of thunder. We had the camper wide open because it was 90+ degrees and no shade. We finished up our dinner and by the time we got to the restaurant door it was pouring down rain so hard that from the front door to the car we were sopping wet!! Luckily the rain was straight down and nothing was wet! We went to bed early listening to the hard rain that lasted most of the night. The next day we had about 4 hours of driving. Along our route down to Tennessee we had planned to check out some interesting roadside stops that weren't too far out of our way. The first one was Metropolis IL on the first part of our trip to check out the giant Superman and downtown. We have lunch there and treated the kids to malts at Sonic! Our second stop was right in Nashville which was a airplane wing sundial. Our 3rd stop between Nashville and Pigeon Forge was the Minister's Tree House which was the most unique. This massive tree house wrapped around a group of trees and was just about 4 stories high!! It was very cool and all built by hand sort of gave off a bit of a creepy feeling too.
We arrived at Bear Creek Crossing, home of the King Family Reunion by about 2pm that afternoon. We were just in time to greet everyone as they checked into the resort. Seemed like more than just 4 yrs. since we had seen everyone, it is so crazy how fast life goes by in just that short of time. Lots of new cousins to meet and lots of catching up to do. Bear Creek was amazing! All the cabins were built onto the hills driving up was quite the thrill! Everyone was divided into their own cabin and then we had the clubhouse as a main gathering area at the bottom by the entrance. This was also where we all gathered for our catered breakfast and dinners and had different activities planned for the week. Our house, Cinema 6 was shared with 4 other couples, Adam and Amy, with Lucas, Taryn and Lance; Casey and Amy with Noel and Kelli; Michael and Abby and Meredith and Mike. It was a full house but so big no one was ever in the way of one another! Everyone had their own bath and the whole place was 4 levels! The top floor was the master bedroom, 1st floor was the main level with kitchen/living room, below that was the game room and the lower level was the cinema! The cinema was a hit with the kids who watched a movie just about every night and had big slumber parties! We had two big wrap around porches with two hot tubs and rocking chairs! Our house and porch seemed to become the main battle grounds for the nightly water balloon fights! These water balloon fights seemed to become quite the serious event. A LOT of planning and preparation went into these battle every night. First starting out with water guns small coolers and garbage cans full of balloons graduating to pitchers and buckets of water and larger coolers to bathtubs full of balloons and the purchase of a hose and sprayer!! The grounds were littered with hundreds of balloon fragments and the kids were bribed with money to pick up the pieces! The kids had their fun with the water fights in the daytime launching two big attacks on Grandpa with the help of some fellow cousins!
We made the most of our time in the Pigeon Forge/Gaitliburg area. On Monday we headed our for a hike to Laurel Falls in the Smokey Mountain National Park. The rumor was heading up that there were bears to be seen up by the falls. Sure enough about half way we had a bear step out onto the trail just ahead of us! Almost a little too close for comfort being only about 15-20 feet away! He was a nice bear and kept to himself and wandered about the trail for a couple minutes before realizing there was no where for him to go but up to get out of our way! We saw another up the hill from us just a few more feet down the trail. It was quite the experience and the kids were amazed!! I still have to remind myself that they were wild bears, yikes!
On Tuesday I had set up a whitewater rafting trip for about 60 of us! It was a great hit and everyone had a great time!! Lucas and Grace went along with us and really enjoyed themselves. Taryn, Lance and Owen hung back with Grandpa for the day!

Wednesday we headed into town to take a look and ended up at MagQuest which was kind of an indoor magic adventure quest. It was a good time but not something I would do again. Kids seemed to enjoy it! Wednesday night was the talent show night which was a big hit again this year and with even more participants! Grace did her jazz competition dance as a solo and did fantastic. Owen decided last minute that he wanted to participate and showed off his moves with his dance to Ima Be by the Black Eyed Peas and it was a hit! I was tearing up I was laughing so hard!
Thursday was check out day and we headed to our next adventure with Adam, Amy and the kids! We drove over to the other side of the Smokey Mtns. to Cherokee NC where we camped till Sunday. It was a gorgeous area and I really fell in love with the Smokies. I think I even liked it more than the Rockies! The driving was a little less hairy than the rockies which made it much more enjoyable for me! The campground was beautiful situated in a valley between two streams. We did a lot of hiking in the national park and there were waterfalls everywhere! I hope to go back again another year and take the kids tubing down the streams! The kids got a chance to do a Ranger program and became Jr. Rangers! Cherokee was really a neat little town in the Indian Reservation. Aaron, I and the kids roamed around the town and took a moment to watch some indian dancing along the roadside. Not sure really how authentic the show was but the kids got a kick out of it!
The vacation really was a great one and somewhere I really could see going back to some day! So much more to take in and great nature time!
Make sure and check out the You Tube links on the side to see the videos of Grace and Owen dancing and the King Kids water balloon fight!!!

Tennesee Vacation Pics

National's slide show

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Grace's Dance National Competition was in Des Moines IA. This was her
first time attending a national competition. I have to say it was quite a bit
of fun and nice mom/daughter quality time. We carpooled and shared a
room with a teammate of Grace's and it was so fun to see those two share
the time together! Grace danced on Friday so we headed over early to
watch her friend Aubrey and some of her other teammates hip hop dance.
Grace didn't dance until 4pm and was SO anxious to get her costume on
at one point I had to have her teacher come and tell her she needed to
wait because she wasn't listening to her mother! Grace's team performed
their tap dance Trash first which they shined more than ever on with the
best facial expressions and energy we had ever seen! About an hour later
they performed their jazz number, Rockin Little Pretty One and did an
outstanding job on that as well. Awards were later that evening. The
First thing they announce before awards is Parade of Champions which
is the top 7 or so high scorers that will re-dance their numbers for the
12 and under age group title. To be honest I don't think any of us thought
Grace's group would be brought back seeing as there was quite a bit of
talent to compete against. My thoughts were that if she did it might be
her jazz number. Well, as they started announcing the champs the
announcer started to say "next up a small group from WI", immediately
my ears perked up because I knew we were the only ones from WI.
Sure enough, TRASH!!! I jumped to my feet and started screaming,
probably looking like a fool too, ha! Right then the tears started streaming
down my face! I ran back stage knowing that we had to change and re-
do hair and makeup!! As I got to the back of the stage the girls were
running down screaming and jumping with joy, the tears fell harder and
I started to shake with excitement!! I saw Grace's teacher and we threw
our arms around one another with joy! This was so HUGE for not only
our girls but the owner/teachers, studio and the whole First Position
Team!! Sarah, Grace's teacher and owner of the studio just opened the
doors this year and this is the first year of competition for them! What
a great way to start things off!! Anyway, we got the girls costumes on
and hair teased. They got a chance to run through one last time and
then sat down with Sarah to fill out the questionnaire for their announce-
ment once on stage. They dedicated the dance to Miss Sarah, their
parents and "the whole" world, ha! As the smoke filled the stage and
the lazer lights whizzed across they were announced by name and it
being their first year competing. They did a great job but I think the
nerves took hold a little more this time with a few bobbles. However
the honor and excitement of being chosen to take the stage for a second
performance was plenty for all of us. Still thinking about it now I get
a tear in my eye. The large coveted overall trophy wasn't ours but
the memories of the moment will remain forever just the same!! What
a wonderful experience for all of us! Grace is in her room dancing as I
write and I have no doubt there will be many more moments like this
for the future!
Grace's team did end up with 2nd place overall in the 7/8 age group as
well as 5th for Rockin Pretty One. They also earned a Diamond Elite
trophy for Trash which is the highest level award for the competition
and Elite Top 1st for Pretty One which is just under Diamond Elite.
The studio took home a spirit award and we also had a duet that was
in the parade of champs and took 4th overall in their age division.
Not to mention the other awards and trophies awarded to the other
team members brought home with them!
Be sure to check out the picture album in the corner for all the
highlights!!

Spring Adventures

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Spring Fun

So, spring has sprung and the King Family has sprung into action as well! We started out the season with our first camping trip to a campground down the street about 20min. It was weird for all of loading the car all up and being to our destination in 20 min. Were not used to driving for less than 2 hrs at least when we are all packed up!! We had a great weekend and really were lucky with the weather even though the nights were only 32 degrees!! It was nice to give the new camper a test run and we had a good time on our first venture. Although, the kids need to figure out a little more to do with themselves. How a 2 yr and 8 yr old can become so bored in the land of sticks, dirt, rocks and nature is beyond belief!!

Lets see.... we also visited G&G kay and mike for Easter which was a good time spending the weekend with them! Kids got their much anticipated Easter baskets filled with toys for camping.

We have been having some nice weather here at home and have been able to enjoy some time outside. Owen loves to ride his balance bike and is mastering the hill down the sidewalk where he can now coast all the way down with his feet up! We have spent some time with spring cleanup in the garage and on our new landscaping to see what has made it through the winter! Our basement has been all dry walled and we are getting ready to start some big painting projects with the room in the basement, remaining walls upstairs and our deck chairs we got from Kay and Mike at Christmas time! We are all really looking forward to summer time with the King Family reunion, camping, and visits to see family and of course some much anticipated nice weather!!!

Dance and Potty Pics

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Rainbow Connection Dance Competition

Grace had her second competition down in St. Charles IL over last weekend, March 19-21st. It was a long morning to say the least. Grace had to perform at 8:00, 9:30am and then had awards at 1:00pm. Her group did great earning a Platinum award for Jazz and High Gold for Tap. There tap number I thought was the better of the two but they were both great. We were able to go to the hotel that afternoon and enjoy some down time with the team with swimming and pizza. It was great to get to meet some of the other parents and get to know one another!!

Potty Success!!

Well, I think I am able to say that Owen is officially potty trained!! Lets see, he told me one night as I was putting him to bed which I believe was Monday March 9th that he wanted to go on the potty and wear big boy undies. I told him that we could do that and start right away in the morning. Well, about 5 min. later he came out of bed and told Aaron he had to go, which he did!! The next day we put undies on. We had a lot of cleaning up to do that day but we didn't give up!! By the end of the week he somewhat had the hang of things but going #2 on the potty was still a chalenge. So, as of today in the last week and a half we have only had a few accidents here and there. Most of the time it is when he is busy playing outside. It sure has been nice not having to change poopy diapers or buy them for that matter!! So happy this is under our belt before summertime!!
On another note. We went to the grocery store today and Owen called some old lady Mrs. Potato Head. I think she was hard of hearing and couldn't tell exactly what he said. She just said your sure right, laughed and kept moving!
I also heard him talking to himself at the store while in the produce section. There was a baby making some noise. I heard Owen say, "Its ok baby, don't cry. Are you hurt baby? Im a doctor, I can help you baby. What hurts baby? Your head? Let me see baby. Ohh, baby you will be ok, Im a doctor and I can fix it." What a ham!!

Owenisms

A couple of weeks ago I had a meeting at work and had to take Owen. I brought along the DVD player so he could watch Toy Story during the meeting. Just yesterday Owen came in with Dad while Dad got his hair cut. My boss, Anita asked Owen "Where is your Toy Story?". Owen replied "Its in my pants", and started to pull his pants down!! Well, Anita didn't know it but Owen was wearing Toy Story underwear!! Well Owen that's one way to pick up the ladies ;)

Ski Trip 2010

This last weekend was our annual ski trip to the UP, our 7th consecutive year! It was a really fun trip as always! My Mom was able to be with us this year and experience the weekend with all 8 of us! We stayed at the cottage with her and Tom this year as usual. We brought Owen and Grace along and Owen stayed behind with Grandma and Grandpa while Grace decided she wanted to ski with us both days! We started out on Friday at Blackjack and I took Grace down a small hill where she had quite a tumble and was having a hard time finding her balance afterward. We decided to get her a 1 1/2hr. lesson. About 45min. into the lesson I caught up with her and she was cruising down the hill with comfort and ease. There after she didn't want to stop skiing. The second day we went to Indianhead where she skied right along with the whole group even venturing down some black diamond runs with the boys!!
We had beautiful weather for the trip 40 degrees and sunny! It was so nice I couldn't even stand to wear my ski jacket and wore a light weight spring coat! The girls and I enjoyed a couple pitchers of beer out on the sun deck of the bar at the bottom of the hill on Saturday and I really felt like I was on vacation!!
We all made it home in one piece from the two days of skiing. Aaron won the trophy for the 3rd time in 7 years. He took a nice tumble racing Joe down the hill for a beer!! I had one fall trying to do my thing in the terrain park! As always we enjoyed all being together again along with many stories to tell in the future!!

Applause Dance Competition

Grace is off to a running start this year with her first dance competition!! This weekend was the Applause Dance competition in Middleton. Grace was apparently awakened by her nerves at 6:30am on Saturday morning. On the way to Middleton she kept saying how nervous she was. However when we arrived there that morning all the nerves turned into excitement. Seemed as though I couldn't get her ready fast enough! She requested that we wait to do her hair and makeup with the rest of the girls. What a project that turns out to be. Hair needs to be puffed up in front and in a high pony. We have 3 different eye shadows that are to be applied, eyeliner, mascara, eye gems, blush, glitter glimmer for the cheeks and of course lip liner and lip stick, whew!! They also all wear a sparkly choker necklace and hair pony. Then you can't forget about the costume!! It is all quite exhausting and we are always in a rush but it is exciting at the same time.
Grace's jazz group did really well earning a high gold award and her tap received a gold award. Platinum is the highest followed by high gold and gold. The team gets a trophy and the team members each get a pin to wear on their team jackets for each award they win. Grace had a fantastic time and is already counting down the days till the next competition, apparently in 15 days which will be in St. Charles Il!

2009Feb

Ok, so once again I am lagging a month behind on my posts!! Let's see what has the last month brought us. Well, it started out with my bday weekend which was spent up north at my Mom and Tom's house and celebrating Ghiloni Christmas. I always love the big family atmosphere!! We sure do pack em in there with 8 adults, 2 big kids and 3 smaller ones!! The kids enjoyed the weekend with some playing in the snow and sledding down the long driveway. Us girls enjoyed some scenic snowshoeing with my Uncle Gerry. As always there was the usually adult gift steal/exchange and a exciting round of Pictionary complete with video playback thanks to my Step-Brother Nick. I don't know how we made it through the games in the past w/o it, it might be getting a little too serious!! The kids were thrilled with their Christmas gifts. Grace got a Barbie Dream house and Owen got a Hot Wheels Craftsman Ford truck both from G&G. They also got some great gifts from the extended family. Grace and Cameron always exchange small gifts and it so neat to watch them interact together. They are attached at the hip for the whole weekend like best friends! Its always so wonderful being up there with the family!
As for the rest of the month it was pretty low key. Grace is getting into the sleepover craze and had two in one weekend. She just got a report card for the quarter and had straight A's!! Dance has been demanding for her with her regular 1 1/2 hr. classes on Wed and then a 2 hr. practice on Sat. for competition coming up. She is being a trooper and working hard! Owen is his usual cute and curious self. I think him and I are really getting cabin fever with the cold weather and just plain yuckiness the winter has brought. It has been chalenging to keep him occupied during the weekdays.
This last weekend my Nephew Josh and his wife Lindsey came down and all of us went to the Janesville Jets Hockey game. I was really leery about taking the kids but it turned out to be a blast. Owen loved cheering them on first starting out with "Go Badgers" which we corrected. Along with that was "Ohh, come on", "Go Jets", "Swiss Cheese" and anything else he picked up from the crowd around us! He was glued to the game the whole time. He was in Hockey heaven when Dad and Josh took him up and had him stand on the boards against the glass, flinching every time they skated close. It was a really rough game and SO much fun to watch!! They really draw a great exciting crowd and won 3-2!! Grace enjoyed herself also and even got a free tshirt from the drunk guys behind us!! I was really looking forward to a game w/o kids but don't know if that will happen anymore, their hooked!!

Christmas time!

Well, the holidays keep going and going for us as usual!! It is kind of nice to have it spread out as fast as they come and go. We were fortunate enough to stay home around "Christmas" time. My Dad and holly came down and stayed with us from Tuesday till Friday and it was really great to have them around. What great quality grandparent time for the kids!! Always seems that the one Grandparents you think won't spoil your kids are the ones that do the most, ha! Not a bad thing by any means! Anyway, we enjoyed an evening with Joe and Heather stopping in on Tues. Nicole and the kids joined us also. Wed. day and night my Dad and Holly had the kids all day and evening while I was at the mall and Aaron there at night when I went to the salon for work. Dad made some wonderful meals including a roast that night and a ham on Christmas eve that was awesome! The kids got some really cool toys including flying monkeys, small rocket launchers, a billabo and pop gun. Grace got some new boots and a barbie! It was great to have my parents here to experience Santa with the kids. This may be the last year I can convince Grace to "believe" in Santa.
We enjoyed a visit from Kay and Mike on Sunday of that week. It was a great time spent with a quick shopping trip for Kay and Sara, a usual outing for us!! We munched on snacks all day and taught Grace how to play monopoly. The kids enjoyed their wonderful gifts. Grace got a new Liv barbie doll along with doll clothes, and a cool outfit from Justice for herself. Owen, got a Handy Manny motorcycle take apart toy and motorcycle sweat shirt. We opened gifts from Adam and Amy and Owen was SO into his Handy Manny boat building kit. Grace will be able to treat herself to a trip to Claire's and Cold Stone!!!
Bill visited over this weekend and stayed the night with us. Unfortunately it was too cold to go sledding like we had wanted. So, we hung out and played Life and opened our gifts. Grace got some roller blades and coloring sets. Owen got some new sets to go with his Geo Trax train and a ride on motorcycle toy!!
We sure had a wonderful holiday hosting our parents. Looking forward to traveling to my Mom and Tom's next weekend to be guests there for Christmas and my birthday!

Christmas 2009, so far...

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